Apparatus and method for game playing between players of different skill levels

ABSTRACT

Some embodiments of the present invention facilitate learning a subject matter in the form of a game. Difference in competency level of the participants may be addressed. For example, distinctive difficulty levels of the players&#39; boards allow participants to play a game together according to their competency level by selecting an appropriate board for each player&#39;s skill level. For example, a game may utilize information or pieces or other features in common, but the meaning or interpretation or significance of those information or pieces or other features to each user may be different, depending on the particular interpretation or mapping (e.g., as indicated or utilized by a game element—e.g., a game board, physical or virtual).

RELATED APPLICATION(S)

The present patent application is related to and claims the benefit ofpriority from commonly-owned U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.60/579,845, filed on Jun. 14, 2004, entitled “Apparatus and Method forGame Playing between Players of Different Skill Levels”, which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

Children learn better when they are in a relaxed environment and whenthe interest level is high. An educational game diverts (and distracts)participant's attention from mundane and sometimes boring aspects oflearning and repetition, and focuses the participant's attention onother less overtly academically oriented goals, such as winning thegame, while providing learning opportunities. In an educational game,the importance of learning the subject matter should not overshadow theaspect of fun expected from a game. The following games are knownexamples of games that combine recreational and educational experiencein teaching mathematics.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,743,740 to Visser et al describes a board game thatcomprises a board with imprint of letters, words, numbers, symbols orpictures arranged in plurality of rows and columns and cards imprintedwith similar content. The instructor of the game picks and recitesinformation on the selected card. The participant whose board isimprinted of the recited information, in the form of letters, words,numbers, symbols or pictures will cover that information with a marker.The object of the game is to cover a defined sequence of boxes on theboard. The difficulty of the game depends on the cards, and thus thegame expects players to have similar competency level to play together.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,079,710 to Brown describes a bingo-type game thatcomprises a board imprinted with a unique combination of color andnumber and caller cards imprinted with numbers, words or expressions.The caller of the game picks and recites information on the selectedcolored card. The participants whose board are imprinted of the samecolor and number combination as the recited information or derived fromthe recited equation on the colored card will cover that informationwith a marker. The object of the game is to cover a defined sequence ofboxes on the board. The difficulty of the game depends on the cards, andthus the game expects players to have similar competency level to playtogether.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,688,126 to Merritt describes a board game that comprisesa board imprinted with numbers to form a mathematical table for specificarithmetic operations (addition and subtraction, or multiplication anddivision), and dice. The player rolls the dice to make up an expressionand places a marker on the board where it was imprinted with the answer.The object of the game is to have a sequence of markers that start fromthe player's edge of board toward the opposite edge. The difficulty ofthe game depends on the board and the dice, and thus the game expectsplayers to have similar competency level to play together.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

What is needed are improved educational games.

Some embodiments of the present invention facilitate learning a subjectmatter (e.g., mathematics and/or related material, or other subjects) inthe form of a game. Some embodiments of the present invention address(or also address) the issue of difference in competency level of theparticipants. For example, distinctive difficulty levels of the players'boards presented in some embodiments of the present invention allowparticipants to play a game together according to their competency levelby selecting an appropriate board for each player's skill level. Forexample, a game may utilize information or pieces or other features incommon, but the meaning or interpretation or significance of thoseinformation or pieces or other features to each user may be different,depending on the particular interpretation or mapping (e.g., asindicated or utilized by a game element—e.g., a game board, physical orvirtual).

For example, accessibility of relevant information in each level toassist the participants in finding the solution in order to complete thegoal of the game minimize the frustration the participants may encounterduring the game, while providing an opportunity and information for theparticipant to learn the information. Thus, some embodiments of thepresent invention provide an environment that is fun and engaging, whilethe participants may learn the material pertaining to the game withoutbeing overtly academic.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is aneducational game, suitable for playing together by players of differingskill levels. The game includes a plurality of indicia that indicatepieces of information, the pieces of information hereinafter referred toas answers, the answers to be activated for play by multiple players.The game also includes a plurality of player boards, each for use by aplayer, each player board bearing expressions that can be solved usinghuman skill to be revealed as corresponding to answers, the playerboards of at least two different players having different expressionsthat are of different difficulty levels, wherein at least two differentexpressions, each from a mutually different player board, can both berevealed as corresponding to a mutually same answer.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is amethod for together teaching learners of different skill levels. Themethod includes giving to each learner a player board that ispredetermined to be suitable for the learner's skill level, at least twodifferent learners having different player boards that are predeterminedto be of different difficulty levels. The method also includes enablingdeclaring of pieces of information, the pieces of informationhereinafter referred to as answers, the answers to be responded to byeach of multiple players, including players having player boards thatare predetermined to be of different difficulty levels. Each playerboard bears expressions that can be solved using human skill to berevealed as corresponding to answers, wherein at least two differentexpressions, each from a mutually different player board, can both berevealed as corresponding to a mutually same answer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to more extensively describe some embodiment(s) of the presentinvention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings. Thesedrawings are not to be considered limitations in the scope of theinvention, but are merely illustrative.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a possible game board according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows examples of content in a grid region for different levels.

FIG. 3 shows examples of content in a help region.

FIG. 4 shows an example of a master board.

FIG. 5 shows an example of numbered tokens.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

The description above and below and the drawings of the present documentrefer to examples of embodiment(s) of the present invention and alsodescribe some exemplary optional feature(s) and/or alternativeembodiment(s). It will be understood that the embodiments referred toare for the purpose of illustration and are not intended to limit theinvention specifically to those embodiments. For example, althoughspecific game boards are show, other game boards and configurations maybe used, whether the other boards are physical or virtual, or fixedlyimprinted or dynamically imprinted or time-varying, or the like. Rather,the invention is intended to cover all that is included within thespirit and scope of the invention, including alternatives, variations,modifications, equivalents, and the like.

Some embodiments of the present invention relate to or include a boardgame designed to envelop practicing subject matter to be learned (e.g.,mathematics) into a fun and engaging environment. For example, a gamemay provide ample opportunities for participants to review and practicerelevant mathematics material according to each participant's knowledge.Various features illustrated in the present document are solely for thepurpose of demonstration and should not be use to limit the scope of thepresent invention. Examples of such features include the number of rowsand columns in a first region (e.g., a grid region), the content withineach sub-region (e.g., each square) within the first region, anygraphical elements imprinted on a game board (e.g., physical or virtualboard), label ranges (e.g., number ranges) of tokens, sizes and shapesof tokens, the complexity and subject matter (e.g., pertaining tomathematics).

Some preliminary remarks may be helpful. The remarks relate tomathematics, but the invention is not limited to mathematical subjects.The understanding of basic mathematics symbols and operations are thefundamental not only to more advanced mathematics operations, but alsoin the day to day operations of our daily lives. It is important thatthe children understand the underlying reasoning behind simpleoperations, for example, adding 5 to 3 can be achieved by counting 5fingers from one hand and continuing counting 3 more from the otherhand; or 8 times 3 is adding 8 to itself 3 times. But, at some point,deriving at the results of these operations should be automatic, that isknowing that 5 plus 3 is 8 without counting fingers or 8 times 3 is 24without adding. Achieving automatic (or subconscious) computation skillsrequires repetition such that the information is learnt by heart.

In the process of achieving the goals of a game, a participant shouldpreferably be challenged but not be frustrated because of his or hercompetency level on the subject matter. And in allowing children ofdifferent competency levels to play in a same game, children of a lowerlevel may learn from more advanced children and be inspired to advancetheir own level.

One issue with existing educational games is that there is no trulymulti-player game in which the players are of different competencylevels. Another issue is that there is no educational game in whichplayers are not expected to have learnt the material before they canplay, and thus game becomes merely a test on how well the players knowthe material, and there is no opportunity for the players to learn asthey play the game. One or both of these issues may be addressed by someof the embodiments of the present invention.

Some embodiments of the present invention provide an educational game inwhich participants of different skill levels may participate in the samegame at the same time.

Some embodiments of the present invention provide an educational andrecreational game that has easily understandable objectives and rules,and the time needed to achieve the goal of the game is relatively short.

Some embodiments of the present invention provide an educational andrecreational game that provide an incentive to learn academic relatedmaterial and in which participants are not be penalized in the game fornot knowing the material by heart.

Some embodiments of the present invention provide an educational andrecreational game in which the participants will have an opportunity toaccess, repeat and practice academic related material that theparticipants have not fully grasped or committed to memory.

Some embodiments of the present invention allow access to academicrelated material to be withheld in order to test the knowledge acquiredby the participants.

An embodiment of the present invention includes a game that is adaptedfor mathematical subject matter. The game is configured to reinforceknowledge pertaining to recognition of numbers, the numbers and theirword equivalents, and/or simple and complex arithmetic operations. Otherembodiments may be configured for other subject matter.

Some embodiments of the present invention are educational games thateach includes a set of different boards containing material of varyingoperations and difficulties, depending on the board. The levels ofdifficulty of the board, for a mathematics-oriented embodiment, may be,and need not be limited to, the following categories:

(I). Numbers only: the board includes only numbers;

(II). Number and its word equivalent conversion: the board includes onlynumbers or word equivalent of the number;

(III). Simple addition and subtraction: the board includes informationfrom category (I), and simple addition and subtraction expressions thatdo not require carry-over or borrowing;

(IV). Complex addition and subtraction: the board includes informationfrom category (III), and complex addition and subtraction expressionsthat require carry-over or borrowing;

(V). Simple multiplication and division: the board includes informationfrom category (IV), and straight forward multiplication and divisionexpressions;

(VI). Complex expressions: the board includes information from category(V), and complex expressions that involve all four operations (+, −, ×,÷).

Although mathematics-oriented embodiments are discussed in detail, thepresent invention is not limited to being directed to teaching orreinforcing mathematics or any (other) particular subject matter. Forexample, even within mathematics, possible subject matter is restrictedto merely the four operations (+, −, ×, ÷) on whole numbers as describedin detail, but may include other types of numbers, for exampleoperations involving fractions, or other types of operations, or thelike, or any other subject matter.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a board thatincludes region, for example, a grid-patterned region arranged in fiverows and five columns imprinted on the grid region of the board with orwithout addition or multiplication table in the help region of theboard. One possible range of value imprinted on the numbered token isfrom 1 to 100. This means that all the values either imprinted on theboard or derived from the expression imprinted on the board fall withinthis range. Other circumstances may prefer a different region (e.g.,“grid”) size or arrangement or form and/or a different range or types ofvalues.

One possible objective of a game according to an embodiment of thepresent invention is to complete a pattern by covering the squares withtokens predetermined prior to the start of the game. This pattern maybe, and need not be limited to, horizontal, vertical or diagonal. Thecaller of the game is responsible to draw a numbered token and recitesthe value imprinted on the token. If within a square of the square gridon the player's board is imprinted with the recited value, the wordequivalent of that value, or an expression that produces the recitedvalue, the player covers that square with a blank token. The firstplayer who covers the grid in a predetermined pattern wins the game.

FIG. 1 shows the player's board 11. There are two regions on the board:the grid region 12 and the help region 13. This illustration presentsone version of the board orientation and the relative position of theregions of such board. The grid region 12 includes a grid pattern offive rows and five columns 20. Above each column is a unique symbol thatserves as the reference label for that column 21. The symbols in theillustration are meant to illustrate their placement only and should notbe taken as part of the design. The help region 13 includes instructionsand other information relating to the difficulty level 14 of the board11. More on the help region will be discussed in a later section.

In the center square 15 of the grid 20 is a free space. This space willnot be imprinted with any number or expressions. The remaining squaresare assigned with a unique value that may be imprinted in forms ofnumber, its word equivalent or an expression that would result in thatvalue. Square 16 contains an example of an imprinted number. Square 17contains an example of an imprinted word equivalent of a number. Square18 contains an example of an imprinted simple expression. Square 19contains an example of an imprinted complex expression.

Before the start of the game, the players will choose boards 11 of acertain level indicated on each board 14. After the caller recites thesymbol and the number on the selected numbered token, the players lookfor the column labeled by the symbol and the content imprinted withinthe squares of that column. Depending on the level of difficulty, theplayer may locate and place a blank token on the square that imprintedwithin which is the recited value, or its word equivalent, or anexpression that resulted in the recited value. Should the player fail torecall the outcome of an expression, the player may refer to the helpregion 13 for the information.

FIG. 2 shows three examples of the content of the square grid in thegrid region of FIG. 1. Grid 22 shows the content of the grid withdifficulty level described in category (II) above. The grid includesnumbers 16-a and word equivalent of numbers 17-a. Grid 23 shows thecontent of the grid with difficulty level described in category (IV)above. The grid includes numbers 16-b, word equivalent of numbers 17-b,and simple addition or subtraction expressions that do not requirecarry-over or borrowing 18-b, and complex addition or subtractionexpressions that require carry-over or borrowing 19-b. Grid 24 shows thecontent of the grid with difficulty level described in category (VI)above. The grid includes numbers 16-c, word equivalent of numbers 17-c,expressions involving a single operator 18-c, and expressions involvingmultiple or different operators 19-c.

FIG. 3 shows four examples of the help region of FIG. 1. Region 14-acontains help information suitable for boards of category (II). A rangeof number and the word equivalents are listed here. Region 14-b containshelp information suitable for boards of categories (III) and (IV).Addition tables of a range of number are listed here. Region 14-ccontains help information suitable for boards of categories (V) and(VI). Multiplication tables of a range of number are listed here. Region14-d contains no help information. It is suitable for boards of all sixcategories. Boards with this region may be used to challenge the playerto use the information that has already been memorized. If manufacturedwith a suitable material, this region of the board may be the erasablescratch pad for players to calculate expressions on.

FIG. 4 shows a master board 25, which contains a full range of numbers,organized into five rows. Each row is labeled by a unique symbol thatcorresponds to those symbols imprinted on the player's board in FIG. 121. As shown in FIG. 5, the numbered tokens are imprinted with an uniquenumber from the preferred range of values, along with the symbol of therow the number is associated with on master board 25. When reciting theinformation of the selected numbered token, the caller recites both theimprinted symbol and the number, and placed the selected token over thesame imprinted number on the master board.

The embodiments and features described in the present document should beviewed as illustrating aspects or principles of the present invention,but the invention is not meant to be limited to merely the specificallyillustrated embodiments.

Embodiments of the present invention may be used as a supplementaryexercise to other teaching materials. Games can provide a fun andeducational exercise for its participants to review the materialsrelating to numbers and arithmetic operations (or other subject matter,including non-mathematical subject matter).

Existing BINGO-based educational games on the market have the followingthree characteristics.

(1). In existing BINGO based educational games, the moderator of thegame picks a question or expression, the participants answer thequestion or do the calculation and covers the resultant value if thevalue is on the board.

In contrast to the above characteristic (1), in one embodiment of aBINGO-type game according to an embodiment of the present invention, theparticipant's board includes questions or expressions (e.g., arithmeticexpressions) as opposed to including only raw atomic answers (e.g.,numbers). The moderator picks an answer or number and each participantwill cover the equivalent or corresponding question or expression on theparticipant's board. However, each board can define equivalence orcorrespondence in a player-specific (e.g., skill-level-specific) manner.This allows the level of difficulty be manifested on the participant'sboard as oppose to the moderators pick. For example, for a lowest skilllevel, the board may simply show raw answers or numbers (e.g., “2”). Inshort, for the lowest skill level, the board is simply like a BINGOboard that shows what the moderator may call out. For a slightly higherskill level, the board may show merely simple analogues of the answer ornumber—for example, mere word equivalents of a number (e.g., “TWO” for“2”). For still higher skill levels, the board may show questions orexpressions (e.g., mathematical expressions) whose answer or solution isor includes or corresponds to the answer or number called out. Ofcourse, the level of difficulty of the questions or expressions can bevaried to obtain boards of different skill levels. Thus, participants ofdifferent skill levels can participate in the game at the same time.Children may progress to their level of difficulties at their own pace.

(2). In existing BINGO based educational games, the participant's boardonly consist of a grid of, e.g., 5×5 squares. In contrast to the abovecharacteristic (2), in one embodiment of a BINGO-type game according toan embodiment of the present invention, boards are designed fordifferent levels of mathematics skills. For children who have notachieved a level of competency and may need extra help, they may referto the information on the help region of the board.

(3). In existing BINGO based educational games, only participants withsimilar level in mathematics can play together.

In contrast to the above characteristic (3), in one embodiment of aBINGO-type game according to an embodiment of the present invention canbe played at home amongst siblings as it allows children to enjoy thegame together, as long as the boards satisfies the desired level ofdifficulties.

Throughout the description and drawings, example embodiments are givenwith reference to specific configurations. It will be appreciated bythose of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention can beembodied in other specific forms. The scope of the present invention,for the purpose of the present patent document, is not limited merely tothe specific example embodiments of the foregoing description. Rather,the scope of the present invention is and is to be indicated by patentclaims.

1. An educational game, suitable for playing together by players ofdiffering skill levels, the game comprising: a plurality of indicia thatindicate pieces of information, the pieces of information hereinafterreferred to as answers, the answers to be activated for play by multipleplayers; a plurality of player boards, each for use by a player, eachplayer board bearing expressions that can be solved using human skill tobe revealed as corresponding to answers, the player boards of at leasttwo different players having different expressions that are of differentdifficulty levels, wherein at least two different expressions, each froma mutually different player board, can both be revealed as correspondingto a mutually same answer.
 2. An educational game according to claim 1,wherein each expression that is realized to correspond to an activatedanswer is thereby a matched expression, and the goal for each playerboard is to obtain a set of matched expressions that satisfy at leastone predetermined goal.
 3. An educational game according to claim 2,wherein the expressions on each board are arranged spatially, and the atleast one predetermined goal includes a goal of achieving a spatialpattern of matched expressions.
 4. An educational game according toclaim 3, wherein the expressions on each board are arranged in a grid,and the at least one predetermined goal includes a goal of achieving alinear pattern of matched expressions that extends from one border ofthe grid to an opposite border.
 5. An education game according to claim1, configured to help teach mathematics, wherein the plurality of playerboards includes a first player board and a second player board, thefirst player board including no expression that includes a mathematicaldivision operation, the second player board including an expression thatdoes include a mathematical division operation.
 6. An education gameaccording to claim 1, wherein the player boards include physical boardsthat are permanently and fixedly imprinted with expressions.
 7. A methodfor together teaching learners of different skill levels, comprising:giving to each learner a player board that is predetermined to besuitable for the learner's skill level, at least two different learnershaving different player boards that are predetermined to be of differentdifficulty levels; enabling declaring of pieces of information, thepieces of information hereinafter referred to as answers, the answers tobe responded to by each of multiple players, including players havingplayer boards that are predetermined to be of different difficultylevels; wherein each player board bears expressions that can be solvedusing human skill to be revealed as corresponding to answers, wherein atleast two different expressions, each from a mutually different playerboard, can both be revealed as corresponding to a mutually same answer.